The following includes information that may be useful in understanding the present disclosure. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art, or material, to the presently described or claimed inventions, or that any publication or document that is specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of flooring installation and more specifically relates to flooring setting systems.
2. Description of Related Art
Flooring is a general term for a semi-permanent covering of an unfinished surface of the ground, such as concrete or unfinished wood. Flooring generally includes tile, wood, laminate, and/or synthetic materials. Each type of flooring often requires a different method of installation. Some types of flooring require being affixed to the unfinished surface or sub-floor by adhesives (e.g., glue, epoxy, etc.).
Wood flooring and related trim pieces are often installed by the “glue-down” method which is often used when wood is placed upon a concrete or other solid surface. Also, wooden stairs and trim is often affixed by adhesive. In many instances, the unfinished surface/sub-floor may not be completely flat and/or level. Additionally, many natural wood products are sometimes not fully uniform and may have a bow or be prone to warping when adhesive is applied. Environmental factors such as heat or humidity may affect the gluing of the flooring materials to the sub-floor. Further, gluing or affixing wooden materials by adhesive often requires adequate and/or continuous pressure to ensure proper setting while the adhesive is curing and/or drying. Therefore a suitable solution is desired.
Several attempts have been made to solve the above-mentioned problems such as those found in US and Foreign Patent and Publication Numbers: U.S. Pat. No. 6,796,049 to Claxton; U.S. Pat. No. 6,047,520 to Caraballo; U.S. Pat. No. 5,867,965 to Pitz et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,772,564 to Leon; U.S. Pat. No. 3,643,992 to Jaccobucci; U.S. Pat. No. 4,091,945 to Patterson; U.S. Pat. No. 5,862,633 to Jones; U.S. Pat. No. 7,946,093 to Sturino; U.S. Pat. No. 9,322,186 to Chang et al.; US 2015/0267420 to Fontana; US 20150184355 to Wang; and CA 2,790,556 to Bordin. This art is representative of flooring installation. However, none of the above references, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the invention as claimed.